The peril of larger vehicles on our roads is compounded by safety standards that too often neglect African markets. And then there's the matter of Toyota Starlets buzzing around South African roads with a zero-star rating.

It is a terrible thing to contemplate but we must have some of the world's worst car accidents.

The fact that we are such a big country, where people have to regularly travel long distances, the type of vehicles so many are forced to use and then on top of that the incredibly bad driving, just add to the worst kind of cocktail.

Very few stories I've covered in my years have affected me as much as what happened to that poor family in Limpopo this week.

When a woman heard her husband had been killed on the N1 near Bela-Bela she rushed across the road, her baby strapped to her back. Then the VIP cavalcade carrying Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi ploughed into her, killing them both instantly.

I have no idea if there was any wrongdoing or how fast that car was going. But having argued with Motsoaledi about many things for many years I am almost certain he would have been deeply affected by this on a personal level. He's a very human person, someone who is not afraid to show you how he is feeling. And unlike many other people who occupy high office I always feel...